Microsoft Windows 10: Free 'anniversary' update coming this summer

The update is free and will come to all Windows devices sometime this summer.

Andrew Hoyle/CNET

Windows 10 will get its first major update this summer.

Terry Myerson, Microsoft's executive vice president of the Windows and Devices Group, detailed the free update at the company's annual Build developer conference on Wednesday. The "Windows 10 Anniversary Update" will bring improvements to the Hello login feature and the Cortana voice assistant. It will also add support for Microsoft's HoloLens augmented-reality headset.

There will be improvements for using a stylus pen, including the ability to write on the screen without having to unlock your device. In addition, Microsoft announced Windows Ink, a new initiative to help improve the experience of using a stylus pen with a Windows 10 device.

Windows Ink puts the stylus front and center, adding stylus support throughout the entire operating system and to more Windows 10 apps. There's also a new hub, called Windows Ink Workspace, that will give you quick access to your most-used Ink-compatible apps and suggest other Ink apps.

The Windows 10 Anniversary Update will be available for free and come to all Windows devices, including the Xbox One video game console, sometime this summer.

Separately, Microsoft also said dedicated apps for Facebook, Instagram and Facebook Messenger would be coming to Windows in the near future.